/) n<p'iz    . 


Issued  June  15,  l«J09 


1".  S.  DEPARTMENT  OF  AGRICU1    !  I   RE, 

BUREAU  OF  PLANT  [NDUSTRY— Circular  No.  33. 

B.  T.  G  VI. l."  i\\  AY.  Chief  of  Bun 


THE  NECESSITY  FOR  NEW  STANDARDS 
OF  Hop  VALUATION. 


W.  W.  STOCEBERGER, 
Pharmacognosist,   Drug-Plant  I  ntestig  SlTIONS. 


>     . 


WASHINGTON  :  GOVEF.:.'  I    :    lens 


DOCUMENTS  5gPT 


DEPOSITORY 


BUREAU  OF   PLANT  INDUSTRY. 


Clue)  o)  Bureau,  Beveklv  T.  Galloway. 

in  |  chit  i  oj  Bui  <  'in,  Ai  bert  r.  Woods. 
Editor,  .1.  E.  Rockwell. 
Chief  Clerk,  James  E.  Junes. 


[C3r.  33] 
2 


B.  I"    I        171! 


THE  NECESSITY  FOR  NEW  STANDARDS  OF 
HOP  VALUATION." 


INTRODUCTION. 

Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  the  desirability  of  a  definite  standard 
for  judging  the  quality  of  hops  has  long  been  recognized,  certain 
practical  considerations  have  thus  far  prevented  its  realization.  Not 
the  least  among  these  has  been  the  existence  of  a  wide  difference  of 
opinion  as  to  what  constitutes  quality  and  as  to  the  nature  and  desir- 
able amounl  of  the  various  constituents  of  a  strictly  high-grade  hop. 
Partly  because  of  the  prevailing  uncertainty  as  regards  the  basis  of 
quality  and  in  pari  because  <>l"  the  advantage  which  a  long-established 
product  in  one  location  usually  has  over  the  same  product  from  a 
new  region,  man}  consumers  practically  lay  aside  all  other  con- 
siderations and  buy  on  the  basis  of  geographical  origin. 

A  careful  examination  of  representative  crops  of  hops  in  the  vari- 
ous hop-growing  regions  can  bul  lead  to  the  conclusion  that  ;i  judg- 
ment a^  to  quality  based  on  origin  alone  must  in  many  cases  result 
in  a  disadvantage  to  the  consumer  and  in  many  others  operate  to  the 
disadvantage  of  the  producer.  The  difference  in  the  quality  of  hops 
produced  i  i  farms  situated  only  a  few  miles  apart  may  be  far  greater 
than  that  between  certain  selected  grades  from  two  or  more  regions 
widely  separated.     There  is  strong  ground  for  the  opinion  that  this 

l'i  connection  with  investigations  on  American  hop  growing  and  handling, 

ii   has  bee e  apparent   that   there  is  a  great   lack  of  uniformity   in  methods 

used  by  American  hop  buyei  cbiug  a  l>asi>-  of  valuation  of  the  product. 

Some  buyers  adopt  geographical  origin  as  the  impi  riterion;  others  the 

aromatic  qualities;  others  the  appearance  chiefly;  while  still  others  accept 
various  combinations  of  these  qualities.  Hence  for  this  important  agricultural 
product  there  is  tn>  generally  recognized  basis  for  determining  real  merit.  This 
is  due  to  a  variety  of  conditions  which  can  n<'t  be  discussed  here.  The  desir- 
ability <>f  reaching  some  common  ground  of  action  is  recognized  by  many  not 
only  in  America,  bul  also  in  Europe.  The  accompanying  paper  written  bj 
Dr.  w.  W.  Stockberger,  Pharmaeoguosist,  under  the  diferti.ni  of  Dr.  Uodney 
II.  True,  Physiologisl  in  Charge  ol  Drug-Plant  [nvestigations,  is  presented  in 
the  hope  thai  it  may  aid  in  bringing  order  intu  this  phase  of  the  hop  situ- 
ation.      B.   T,    GAL!  <>\\  AY.   I'll.  B     "  mi. 

■■■■ 


4  -NHW    STANDARDS    OF    HOP   VALUATION. 

fact  is  well  known  to  the  hop  trade,  since  the  reported  sales  of  hops 
from  certain  districts  bearing  a  favorable  reputation  may  be  several 
times  greater  than  the  production  therein.  Hops  which  would  be 
rated  of  poor  quality  if  their  origin  were  known  may  obtain  very 
favorable  consideration  when  represented  as  coming  from  a  locality 
which  has  a  reputation  for  hops  of  line  quality. 

Through  long  experience  a  considerable  degree  of  skill  may  ba 
acquired  in  the  discernment  of  the  probable  origin  of  a  sample  of 
hops.  Some  even  claim  the  ability  to  tell  from  an  inspection  of  the 
sample  the  exact  section  or  river  valley  in  which  the  hops  were  pro- 
duced,. This  they  may  succeed  in  doing  at  times  in  the  case  of  the 
poorer  grades  or  when  there  is  present  a  secondary  factor  due  to 
some  peculiarity  in  the  method  of  curing  or  in  the  manner  of  prepa- 
ration, but  they  can  not  generally  succeed,  as  such  judgment,  based 
merely  on  the  marks  of  superficial  resemblance,  can  at  the  most  be 
only  guesswork.  The  extravagance  of  these  claims  was  amply  dem- 
onstrated in  a  case  that  came  under  the  personal  observation  of  the 
writer.  A  man  who  has  had  a  wide  experience  in  the  hop  industry 
extending  over  many  years  made  up  in  a  uniform  manner  a  series 
of  samples  of  hops  from  the  principal  hop-growing  sections  of  the 
United  States.  The  samples  were  all  of  fair  quality  and  in  their 
-election  marked  physical  deficiencies  were  purposely  avoided.  These 
samples  were  then  marked  with  a  cipher  and  submitted  in  turn  to  a 
number  of  expert  judges  of  hops.  Not  one  was  able  to  identify  the 
samples  correctly.  Moreover,  the  man  who  prepared  these  sample- 
could  not  place  them  correctly  without  the  cipher.  This  and  other 
similar  experiences  indicate  clearly  that  too  much  emphasis  is  laid 
on  geographical  origin  as  a  criterion  of  quality  in  hops. 

PRESENT   METHODS   OF   VALUATION. 

Almost  without  exception  the  producer  sells  hops  on  the  basis  of 
an  empirical  physical  examination,  but  the  consumer  who  purchases 
his  supply  from  a  dealer  or  broker  may  subject  his  samples  to  chemical 
as  well  as  to  physical  examination.  The  points  which  are  considered 
in  estimating  quality  are  numerous  and  vary  considerably  according 
to  individual  ideas.  The  more  important  of  these  are:  Aroma  or 
flavor,  color,  amount  of  lupulin,  "richness"  or  "fatness."  curing. 
picking  condition,  freedom  from  leaves  and  stems,  etc.,  freedom  from 
mold  and  insects,  amount  of  broken  hops,  quantity  of  seeds  present, 
maturity,  softness  of  texture,  silkiness,  stickiness  or  oiliness,  flakiness, 
size  of  the  cone-,  degree  of  sulphuring,  and  "  feel." 

Certain  feature--,  as,  for  example,  the  presence  of  leaves  and  stem-, 
mold,  insects,  lack  of  lupulin.  broken  hop-,  and  musty  or  sour  smell, 
are  generally  considered  as  detrimental  to  quality  and  are  usually  to 

[Cir.  33] 


NKW     STANDARDS    OF    HOP    VALUATION.  0 

be  readily  determined  by  inspection.  The  relation  which  such  char- 
acteristics as  aroma,  color,  size  of  cones,  etc.,  bear  to  quality  depends 
entirely  on  individual  preference  and  is  no!  determined  by  any  par 
ticular  standard.  The  judgment  is  formed  from  the  impressions 
made  by  the  hop  upon  the  senses  of  sight,  smell,  and  touch,  and 
hence  gives  no  quantitative  measure  of  the  characteristics  of  the  hop. 
In  Germany  a  nearer  approach  has  been  made  to  a  uniform  method 
by  the  adoption  of  schedules  or  score  cards  which  attach  relative 
values  to  certain  characteristics.  The  following  1-  the  schedule  by 
which  hops  were  rated  at  the  sixth  exhibition  of  the  brewing  barley 
and  hops  of  Baden,  held  at  A.ugustenberg  in  October,  L907: 


Quality 
pment  of  the  cones.   ""'in- "i}"" 
lupulin. 


,  . 


Picking. 


Drying. 


- 


Number  of  points  1  in  rating. 


Total  num- 
ber of 
points." 


3. 


t'otal  i>"im^  possible,  2 . 

Many  other  similar  schemes  have  been  proposed,  but  in  the  end  they 
all  depend  upon  individual  taste  or  preference. 

Far  less  importance  is  apparently  attached  to  chemical  analysis 
;  -  a  means  of  determining  quality.  When  this  method  is  employed 
it  i-  customary  to  determine  only  such  constituents  as  are  regarded 
of  greatest  importance.  Some  consider  the  hard  and  soft  resins  of 
greatest  importance  in  the  measure  of  quality  and  hold  that  in  a 
good  -ample  the  -oft  resins  should  be  not  less  than  three  times  greater 
in  quantity  than  the  hard  resins;  some  place  more  weight  upon  the 
tannin  content:  other-  regard  the  proportion-  in  which  such  mineral 
constituents  as  potassium,  Lime,  and  magnesium  occur  in  the  ash  as 
an  index  to  the  quality  of  the  hop.  It  thus  appear-  that  the  chemical 
estimate  of  quality  i-  in  a-  great  a  state  of  uncertainty  as  the  physical 
examination,  owing  to  the  lack  of  agreement  a-  to  the  relative  im- 
portance of  the  constituents  determined  bv  this  method. 


DEFICIENCIES   OF    EXISTING   METHODS. 

The  greatest  defect  in  the  method  of  physical  examination  lie-  in 
the  fact  that  it  is  incapable  of  exact  application.  The  relative  value 
attached  to  the  various  point-  taken  into  consideration  will  differ 
materially  with  various  individuals.  Althougrf so  much  importance 
i-  attached  to  the  aroma  that  with  many  persons  it  IS  the  ultimate 
[Clr.  33] 


O  NEW    STANDARDS    OF    HOP   VALUATION. 

test  of  quality,  yet   it  can  give  no  very  accurate  information  as  to 

intrinsic  value. 

It  has  been  definitely  proved  that  in  many  cases  certain  subcon- 
scious factors  influence  the  estimation  of  aroma  and  the  other  con- 
stituents of  the  Iiojd.  The  chief  of  these  is  geographical  origin,  to 
which  reference  has  been  made.  Another  is  the  presence  or  absence 
of  some  familiar  physical  character  which  may  hear  no  relation  to 
intrinsic  value,  but  nevertheless  affects  the  judgment.  This  conclusion 
was  forced  upon  the  writer  by  the  following  experiment  made  several 
years  ago  when  in  the  hop  fields  of  California.  In  this  experiment 
a  large  basket  was  filled  with  hops  from  the  drying  floor  of  a  kiln 
newly  filled  with  fresh  hops  from  the  field  before  either  heat  or 
sulphur  had  been  applied.  These  hops  were  spread  out  on  the  floor 
of  a  room,  where,  protected  from  the  sun.  they  were  allowed  to  dry. 
After  the  hops  on  the  kiln  floor  had  been  dried  in  the  usual  manner 
by  (he  application  of  heat  and  sulphur  fumes  the  basket  was  again 
filled  from  the  kiln  floor,  this  time  with  dried  hops  selected  from  the 
same  part  of  the  kiln  that  had  furnished  the  first  sample.  These  two 
samples  were,  therefore,  practically  identical  in  every  respect  except 
in  the  method  of  drying.  The  quantity  of  resins  was  determined  in 
a  portion  of  each  sample  and  the  hops  which  had  been  dried  on  the 
kiln  were  found  to  contain  less  soft  resin  than  those  which  had  dried 
naturally  on  the  floor  of  the  room.  Small  hand  samples  of  each  lot 
were  also  prepared  and  submitted  to  four  expert  judges  of  hops  who 
were  ignorant  of  their  origin  and  method  of  preparation.  Two  of 
these  judges  pronounced  the  kiln-dried  sample  superior  to  the  one 
dried  on  the  floor;  two  considered  the  floor-dried  sample  superior  to 
the  one  dried  on  the  kiln. 

The  experience  just  related  affords  a  splendid  illustration  of  the 
workings  of  the  present  method  of  valuation  and  of  the  great  part 
played  by  preconceived  ideas  of  merit.  It  is  also  of  much  interest 
to  study  the  opinions  held  with  regard  to  German  or  Bohemian  hops, 
which  have  long  enjoyed  the  reputation  id'  great  superiority  over 
those  produced  in  the  United  States  because  of  the  specially  line 
annua  ascribed  to  them.  It  is  apparent,  however,  that  the  relation- 
ship of  the  aroma  to  the  other  constituents  has  never  been  fully 
determined,  hut  differences  in  aroma  have  been  assumed  to  be  qualita- 
tive and  indicative  of  wide  differences  in  composition.  There  is  evi- 
dence for  believing  that  differences  in  aroma  are  Largely  quantitative 
and  that  this  factor  is  not  necessarily  a  criterion  of  quality  in  the 
hop.  The  chaotic  condition  of  existing  ideas  with  respect  to  hop 
aroma  and  quality  and  the  necessity  for  their  thorough  revision  is 
further  illustrated  by  the  following  opinion-,  each  from  a  different 
specialist  in  the  use  or  judgment  of  hops. 

[Or.  33] 


Nl'W    STANDABDS   OF    HOP    V7ALUATION.  7 

Saaz  liops  are  best. 

I'll.-  idea  of  the  superiority  of  the  foreign  imp  is  largely  n  matter  of  preji 

German   Imps  are  unquestionably  best. 

Knit  bops  are  the  Hues!  ;  they  are  better  than  the  German. 

The  Wisconsin  Imps  are  .-is  good  as  the  German. 

German  Imps  are  liesl  because  of  their  line  aroma.     A  pound  of  German  Imps 
is  w orth  '■'•  pounds  of  American. 

The  bes(  New  York  Imps  are  practically  as  g 1  as  the  German. 

A  shrewd  dealer  can  sell  anything  thai  looks  like  a  bop. 

Since  Imps  of  differeirl   geographical  origin  have  different   flavors,  naturally 
individual  preferences  become  established. 

The  present    method  of  judging  Imps  is  a    very  doubtful   one;    prejudice  or 
taste  plays  the  larger  part. 

Pacific  coasl  heps  are  stronger  in  preservative  resin  than  English  heps. 

American  bops  can  never  equal  the  German,  but  they  can  be  greatly  improved. 

So  far  as  general  quality  is  concerned,  if  New    York  heps  were  as  carefully 
picked  and  bandied  as  the  foreign  Imps  they  would  equal  the  German  in  quality. 

Differences  between  American,  English,  and  German  heps  are  almost  entirely 
a  question  of  fla  vor. 

German  hops  have  much  more  lupulin  than  the  American. 

There  is  a  wide  difference  in  the  quality  of  German  bops.     New  York  Imps 
grown  from  German  roots  are  better  than  the  poorer  grades  of  German  heps. 

Quality  really   dees  net  anmnnt  to  much.     Salesmanship  father  than  quality 
counts.     Hops  are  frequently  boughl  as  one  kind  and  sold  as  another. 

Pacific  eeast  heps  contain  mere  lupulin  than  foreign  heps. 

I  nglish  Imps  are  superior  to  the  German  heps.     The  superior  flavor  ascribed 
to  the  German  hep  is  chiefly  a  question  of  preference. 

German  bops  bave  a  superior  flavor  bul  are  nol  so  superior  to  the  American 
Imps  as  has  been  generally  supposed. 

The  besl  Pacific  coasl  Imps  are  as  good  as  the  German  or  Bohemian  Imps. 

The  uncertainty  of  the  results  of  physical  examination  and  the 
difficulty  of  determining  quality  in  hops  by  inspection  has  been  long 
recognized  in  Germany,  where  many  safeguards  have  been  adopted 
to  secure  authenticity  in  the  representation  of  the  origin  of  their  hops. 
That  the  hop  trade  recognizes  and  play-  upon  these  prejudio 
shown  by  the  following  statements  of  Emanuel  Gross: " 

It  is  justly  alleged  against  certain  dealers  that  they  falsify  the  origin  of  their 
heps.  A  prominent   part   is  new  played  by  the  numerous  associations 

for  securing  a  proper  guaranty  of  the  origin  of  hep  parrels.  Certain  unscrupu- 
lous d  made  fortunes  by  falsifications  of  this  nature,  viz,  buying 
small  quantities  of,  say,  fine  Saaz  heps,  mixing  them  with  larger  amounts  of 
heps  fr i'm  i   districts  *  and  selling  the  whole  as  Saaz  Imps. 

Hie  regulations  existing  in  Germany  and  Austria  under  which 
packages  of  hep-  are  sealed  and  accompanied  by  a  certificate  in  order 
(hat  their  origin  may  be  guaranteed  in  the  interests  of  both  growers 
and  consumers,  and  the  requirement  in  England  thai  hop-  must  be 
lira  tided  with  the  name  and  add  re—  of  the  grower,  appear  to  indicate 
a  w  idespread  inability  on  the  pari  of  consumers  to  judge  the  quality 

o!    hop-. 

I  Jross,  E.     I  [ops,  pp.  315,  320.     1900. 
[Clr 


0  '    NEW    STANDARDS   OF    HOP  VALUATION. 

NECESSITY   FOR   NEW   STANDARDS. 

Any  rational  plan  for  the  improvement  of  a  crop  requires  a  definite 
standard  of  quality  or  value  by  which  deficiencies  can  be  measured 
and  from  which  clear  ideas  respecting  the  lines  along  which  improve- 
ment is  desirable  can  be  readily  obtained.  The  lack  of  high  stand- 
ards has  too  often  led  to  specialization  on  the  feature  of  yield  alone, 
and  the  consequent  neglect  of  other  factors  has  tended  to  reduce 
rather  than  to  improve  the  quality.  Instead  of  choosing  varieties 
which  produce  hops  of  fine  quality,  growers  have  selected  those  which 
give  the  highest  yield,  believing  that  the  lower  price  received  for  the 
poorer  quality  was  more  than  compensated  by  the  increased  yield 
received  over  the  better  varieties.  There  is  no  doubt  that  the  unre- 
liable and  inefficient  methods  of  judging  quality  hugely  in  vogue 
to-day  furnish  at  least  a  partial  justification  for  this  assumption. 

The  disastrous  prices  which  have  prevailed  for  several  years  and 
the  apparent  gradual  decline  in  the  world's  consumption  of  hops 
should  clearly  impress  upon  Imp  growers  the  desirability  of  better 
methods  of  culture  and  necessity  for  high  and  definite  standard-  of 
quality.  When,  as  i-  the  case  at  present,  the  world's  production  ex- 
ceeds its  consumption,  consumers  will  be  hard  to  please  and  they  can 
demand  and  secure  the  better  grades  of  hops.  For  the  poorer  grades 
no  market  can  be  found  that  will  return  a  profit  to  the  producer. 

For  a  number  of  years  the  American  hop  crop  exceeded  home  de- 
mands, and  under  these  conditions  the  usual  practice  has  been  to 
seek  an  outlet  for  the  American  surplus  abroad.  In  the  foreign  mar- 
kets American  hops  have  come  into  competition  with  the  hops  pro- 
duced in  other  countries  and  are  judged  by  the  standards  of  quality 
which  prevail  there.  The  success,  therefore,  which  American  hop- 
attain  abroad  will  be  conditioned  by  the  degree  to  which  they  meet 
the  foreign  standards  of  requirement.  Whether  these  standards  are 
right  or  wrong,  the  fact  remains  that  they  are  firmly  established  and 
therefore  warrant  the  careful  consideration  of  the  American  grower. 

Owing  to  increased  production  in  Germany  and  Austria  there  have 
been  heavy  exports  from  these  countries  to  the  United  States  during 
the  past  four  years.  The  resulting  com  petition  has  been  unfavorable 
to  American  hops  because  of  the  reputation  for  better  quality  which 
the  imported  hops  enjoy.  To  many  persons  the  characteristics  of  the 
imported  hop  form  a  standard  with  which  all  other  hops  are  com- 
pared. This  i>  an  arbitrary  assumption,  which  fails  to  consider  that 
there  are  wide  differences  in  the  quality  of  imported  hop-,  and  which 
determines  quality  largely  on  the  basis  of  geographical  origin,  with- 
out reference  to  intrinsic  merit.  When  the  various  local  and  sea- 
sonal factors  which  influence  quality  are  taken  into  account,  it  will 
be  seen  thai  present  methods  are  inadequate  for  the  determination  of 
the  variation  in  the  hop  constituents. 


NEW    STANDARDS    OF    HOP  VALUATION.  9 

Ii  seems,  however,  thai  a  careful  and  unbiased  comparative  study 
of  ilif  nature  and  quantitative  relations  of  the  constituents  of  Amer- 
ican and  European  hops  has  never  been  made  with  the  view  of  secur- 
ing a  definite  basis  for  a  standard  of  valuation.  A  great  deal  of 
work  has  been  done  on  the  constituents  of  hops,  but  so  far  no  basis 
ol  agreement  has  been  reached  in  the  interpretation  of  the  relation 
of  these  constituents  to  quality  except  in  a  very  general  way 

The  hops  produced  in  certain  regions  have  established  a  high  repu- 
tation and  the  belief  is  not  infrequently  expressed  that  hops  of  fine 
quality  can  not  be  grown  elsewhere.  This  is  a  very  broad  assertion 
and  is  contrary  to  the  results  secured  with  many  other  cultivated 
plant-.  A  fact  not  usually  considered  is  that  hop-  from  the  same 
raphical  region  may  differ  greatly  in  aroma.  This  difference 
is  due  to  a  number  of  factor-,  prominent  among  which  are.  first,  the 
variety  cultivated.  Certain  varieties  possess  a  well-defined  and  char- 
acteristic aroma,  and  the  possibilities  of  variation  in  this  character- 
istic through  the  crossing  of  varieties  appear  to  be  very  great. 
Second,  the  arom  •  is  influenced  by  the  time  of  picking.  The  volatile 
■  which  the  aroma  i-  largely  due  increases  in  quantity  as  the  hop 
approaches  maturity,  and  a-  a  result  fully  ripe  hops  have  a  stronger 
aroma  than  those  picked  in  an  immature  condition.  Third,  the  process 
of  drying  and  the  "  casing  "  in  the  cooling  room  are  both  capable  of 
inducing  modifications  in  the  aroma.  These  considerations  should 
lessen  the  dependence  placed  on  origin  a-  a  mean-  of  determining 
quality. 

Such  wide  differences  in  notion-  of  quality  as  those  previously 
cited  could  not  exist  if  there  were  a  definite  standard  by  which  quality 
wa-  measured.  Not  only  do  the  judgments  of  those  who  depend 
upon  physical  tests  alone  differ  widely,  In  it  t  here  is  a  wide  divergence 
in  opinion  based  on  chemical  tests  a-  well.  Moreover,  it  i-  well  known 
that  the  opinion-  of  those  who  depend  entirely  upon  physical  ex- 
amination do  not  often  agree  with  the  opinions  of  those  who  form 
their  judgments  a-  a  result  id'  chemical  analysis. 

It  i-  essential  that  there  lie  established  uniform  method-  of  mak- 
ing phy-ical  and  chemical  examinations  of  hop-  just  a-  there  have 
been  established  and  accepted  uniform  method-  of  examining  and 
testing  many  other  material-.  Standard-  of  quality  must  he  estab- 
lished al-o.  for  a  fail'  comparative  valuation  can  he  secured  only  on 
the  basis  of  well-defined  and  universally  adopted  tests.  New  stand- 
ards founded  upon  an  exact  knowledge  of  the  nature  and  relative 
worth  of  the  various  hop  constituents  are  necessary  to  prevent  un- 
merited discriminations  being  made  in  the  markets  which  work  a 
hard-hip  to  many  American  hop  growers  and  which  impose  un- 
necessary costs  upon  the  consumer. 

[Clr.  33  J 


10  NEW    STANDARDS   OF    SOP   VALUATION. 

MOVEMENT   FOR   AN   INTERNATIONAL   STANDARD. 

The  great  inconvenience  to  the  hop  trade  arising  from  the  lack 
of  a  reliable  crop-reporting  service  and  from  the  difficulty  of  obtain- 
ing authentic  statistics  on  the  acreage  and  annual  production  is  ap- 
preciated as  fully  in  Europe  as  in  America.  As  a  result  of  these 
conditions  a  movement  was  set  on  foot  recently  in  Germany  having 
for  its  object  the  formation  of  an  international  agreement  between 
the  hop-raising  States  of  various  countries,  under  the  terms  of  which 
a  reliable  reporting  and  statistical  service  might  be  secured.  Pur- 
suant to  this  end.  at  the  International  Hops  and  Barley  Exhibition 
held  at  Berlin  in  October,  1908,  a  conference  was  called  of  all  the 
representatives  of  hop  growers  in  attendance  for  the  purpose  of 
general  discussion,  and  to  consider  the  establishment  of  an  interna- 
tional bureau  of  information  regarding  the  production,  consumption, 
and  value  of  hops,  ami  to  formulate  plans  of  united  action  for  the 
mutual  benefit  of  those  engaged  in  the  hop  industry. 

A  committee  was  appointed  to  work  out  the  details  of  the  plan- 
suggested  at  this  conference  and  to  send  them  to  the  hop  growers' 
organizations  in  the  various- countries.  It  was  also  resolved  to  call 
a  general  conference  of  representatives  of  the  growers  of  all  the  hop- 
producing  countries  to  meet  in  Bohemia  in  the  latter  part  of  August, 
1909.  It  was  further  decided  that  at  this  conference  the  establish- 
ment of  an  international  standard  for  judging  the  quality  of  hops 
should  also  be  carefully  considered. 

Sufficient  reasons  have  been  advanced  to  show  that  the  adoption 
of  a  new  and  impartial  standard  of  quality  is  not  only  desirable  but 
necessary.  When  it  is  considered  that  the  favorable  reception  of 
American  hops  abroad  depends  upon  foreign  approval;  that  the 
adoption  of  an  international  standard  based  entirely  upon  European 
ideas  of  quality  without  regard  to  the  intrinsic  merits  of  American 
hops  would  operate  to  the  disadvantage  of  the  American  grower: 
and  that  American  hops  are  measured  as  to  quality  in  their  home 
markets  by  a  standard  of  excellence  based  upon  the  features  of  hops 
imported  from  the  German  Empire,  it  seems  that  the  hop  growers 
of  the  United  States  should  not  fail  to  avail  themselves  of  the  op- 
portunity to  send  to  this  conference  duly  authorized  and  qualified 
representatives,  who  should  aim  to  secure  more  favorable  considera- 
tion of  the  qualities  of  American  hops.  Every  effort  should  be  made 
to  bring  about  the  thorough  iv\  ision  of  the  methods  of  hop  valuation 
and  to  secure  the  reinvestigation  of  hop  constituents  as  a  step  pre- 
liminary to  the  fixing  of  an  international  standard,  which  should  be 
based  on  intrinsic  value  without  reference  to  other  factor-. 

The  objection   may   he   urged   that    the   American   representatives 
would  he  so  outnumbered  in  a.  conference  to  be  held  abroad  that  their 
[Cir.33] 


NEW     STANDARDS    OF     llol'    VALUATION. 


11 


views  would  nol   receive  full  consideration,  and  that  it   were  better, 

therefore,  to  take  no  part  in  tin    vement.     On  the  other  hand,  no 

international  standard  could  be  adopted  except  with  the  accord  oi 
all  the  representatives,  and  a  strong  presentation  of  the  necessity  for 
a  broader  and  more  thorough  basis  of  hop  valuation  could  nol  be 
ignored.  Such  action  should  lead  to  the  clarification  of  ideas  re- 
- 1  ied  i  g  I  he  qua  litj  of  hops. 


A  ]  i]  >r<  >\  e<  i  : 

.1  Wll  -   WlLSl  IN, 

St     ■  tary  of  .  \.(ji  ieultun  . 
Washington,  D.  ('..  May  13, 

[Cir.  33] 

O 


univtKsin   ui-  t^_un\u^ 


3  1262  08928  9465 


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